The plastic container industry continues to employ ever increasing amounts of recycling. Container manufacturers have recently started producing containers with digitally printed labels that are of a sufficient definition and quality to compete with and potentially replace prior conventional labeling techniques. Examples of such printing techniques are described in commonly-owned U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,625,059 and 7,736,713, which are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference.
Potential challenges arise introducing containers with digitally printed labels into conventional container recycling processes. Some challenges have been mentioned and discussed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/581,952, which is also incorporated herein in its entirety by reference. There is a clear trend amongst container manufacturers, brand owners, end users, and governmental entities to improve and increase plastic container recycling efforts. Consequently, it is desirable to provide industry-acceptable articles that are sufficiently compatible with the current recycling infrastructure and processes, or that provide sufficient incentive and/or volumes to effectuate industry-wide changes. At least initially, it would be desirable to provide digitally printed articles that are recyclable using current industry standard processes—i.e., processes that commonly include caustic high-temperature washing and grinding. As such, there is a desire for digitally printed plastic articles, such as containers, that have digital images that adhere to the article without quality issues throughout its useful life, but are more readily removable during plastic recycling processes.